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A great idea from Lush

This body mask cube cost me £3.95 from Lush Nottingham around a year or so ago.

The mask is solid and it comes presented in a small cube. The colour of the mask is a soft beige colour and it smells quite sweet. The mask needs to be kept somewhere that is dry and free from moisture as it breaks up when it comes into contact with moisture. The mask is to be used in the bath or shower. I used the mask in the shower, although I was left freezing my toes off!

I washed my body as normal, turned the shower off and applied the mask to my wet skin. The mask was actually really fun (and messy) to use. It smelt amazing and it was easy to apply to my wet body. I left the mask on for around five minutes in total. This left me standing there in the shower freezing cold whilst the mask was doing it's work. I couldn't go and sit down as the mask was plastered all over my skin!

After five minutes I rinsed the mask off and towel dried my body as normal. My body smelt amazing afterwards with a lovely sweet smell lingering and my skin looked like it was just glowing. My skin felt loads better and it felt firmer for a few days after using the mask. The mask seemed like it toned my skin so I would use it before a party when I want my body to be in good shape.

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I really like it! Smells gorgeous and has wonderful effects on my skin!

Glorious MudGlorious Mud is a body mask made and sold by Lush, an amazing bath & cosmetics company. I am sure a majority of people reading this review will of heard of Lush - however for the minority that haven't, Lush hand make all of their products from Vegan friendly, cruelty-free ingredients and are very planet friendly as they use minimal packaging and promote recycling. Glorious Mud has been around for a while now and it's part of their 'body mask' range. A lot of people are probably wondering what a body mask actually is. It is essentially the same as a face mask; the only difference being that it's for the body - lol. The product refreshes, cleanses and exfoliates the skin and it's just like having a spa treatment, but for much less money and in the comfort of your own home!

What Lush Say..Lush state on their website that glorious mud does a variety of things, including cleansing, moisturising, softening and refreshing the skin. They also state that the product is a gentle exfoliator. They say that the product is quick and easy to use, although admit that it's slightly messy and describe it as being 'very nice'. They also make it clear that this is a much cheaper option to a professional spa mud mask and describe the scent as being rich and expensive.

What's In It?Rhassoul mud is the main ingredient. This is a natural mineral product which has many benefits. It has a foaming effect and removes grease, and it's also an amazing natural cleanser. As well as this, it smoothens the skin. Another ingredient is organic seseame oil, which softens and moisturises the skin. Aloe vera is also included. This is one of the oldest natural remedies and it has many positive effects on the skin - it promotes and aids healing, softens and soothes the skin, reduces redness and reduces itching. There are lots more ingredients including various ingredients that create the lovely smell, and the full list of ingredients can be found on the Lush website.

Price, Value For Money and AvailabilityGlorious Mud is currently (March 2012) priced at £3.95 (basically £4!) for a 125 gram lump. One lump is more than enough for 2-3 uses depending on how thick I want it to be or how much of my body I want to use it on and it can also be sliced up if you want to ensure that you get multiple uses out of it. The lump is generously sized and due to the quality and the amount you get, I do think it is worth it. Glorious Mud is available in-store in most Lush stores and it can also be purchased via their website.

Physical AppearenceThis is quite a strange looking product. It's simply a very light brown cube shaped lump with rounded edges. It has a lightweight feel to it and weirdly enough reminds me of shortbread - lol. The cube isn't very solid and it crumbles quite easily so can be a little messy.

PackagingMy lump of glorious mud simply came in the usual paper Lush bag that was sealed with a white sticky label. This kept the product fresh and contained to avoid any crumbs/mess getting everywhere. The label simply says the product name and the date it was purchased. The paper bag can be recycled.

Smell and TextureThe texture of this when it's in solid form is quite strange; it has an almost gritty feel to it. When it's been dissolved with water though it transforms into a thick paste. When on the skin it's lovely although the grains from the rhassoul mud are noticeable. The smell is probably one of my favourite Lush scents; it's very sweet with the most prominant smell been vanilla with a very subtle citrussy undertone. Due to the colour of the product (brown), I must admit that I was expecting a chocolatey scent. Despite having the citrus edge, it doesn't smell at all fruity or floral and instead smells like something you'd eat rather than rub all over your body! The smell isn't overpowering as it has an earthy undertone, but it's strong enough for the scent to fill the bathroom and linger for a while afterwards, too. This is defiently a more feminine than manly scent in my opinion, although I think that most people would enjoy the scent as it's so sweet and comforting.

My ExperienceI bought this two weeks ago now after a friend reccomended it to me and I am so glad that I did - I love it! I was a little hesitant at first as I had no idea how to use it; it comes in block form and so I was confused about what it actually was, however it's actually very easy to use. To use, I get into the shower for 5 minutes to get my body damp and I then quickly let the water come into contact with the lump of product. I only allowed a little to get onto it at first but it remained dry, so in the end I let it get covered in water. It acted like a bath ballistic and immidietly began noticeably dissolving and fizzing. I then simply rubbed my hands together and spread it all over my body, focussing on my torso. I used half of the block and this was suprisingly enough to cover all of my body except my back and face.

The paste is easy to spread over my skin and the mild scratchy feeling of it exfoliating my skin wasn't unpleasant, although it wasn't particullary enjoyable either. It's easy to control the thickness of the paste and I used a reasonably thin layer as I didn't want to lather it on. Once on my skin was covered, I massaged it into my skin gently and hung around in the bathroom for 5 minutes or so in order for my skin to soak up the goodness. It was nice just standing there listening to music and enjoying the smell of the body mask.

I can't say that I felt any sensations from the body mask though; it didn't make my skin feel instantly moisturised or anything. The mask took a while to dry and it didn't dry uncomfortably hard, meaning it didn't take too long to get off. To remove I had a bath, making sure my hair didn't come into contact with the murky, muddy water, and simply scrubbed it off with my exfoliating gloves. This wasn't too messy and most of the residue etc went down the plug hole so there was no staining. I did have to clean my bath out afterwards to wipe down any brown marks (yuck!) but this wasn't too time consuming and it didn't stain at all.

Once out of the bath and dried off I could feel that my skin felt soft, smooth and silky to the touch. My knees and ankles are often very dry and this sorted that out with no effort; my skin felt (and smelled!) amazing. The scent lingered for a couple of hours both on my skin and in my bathroom, which I liked. The smoothing, softening/moisturising effect on my skin was long lasting and it felt noticeably better (softer, moisturised) for a couple of days after use which for the price I think is fab. My skin is quite dry and very sensetive, so I am always wary of using new products, however I had no problems with this at all.

The only minor niggle that I have with this product is that in my opinion it is more of a shower scrub than a body mask, however due to how moisturised it left my skin I won't complain too much, and I like that it's such a gentle, effective exfoliator. Also, although it's quite cheap, it'd get expensive if bought often so I would reccomend slicing it up and then using it on certian areas of your body - eg areas that are prone to dry skin. Another minor downside is that it's impossible to put it onto my back by myself, so if you want a proper all-over mud mask you will need assistance!

OverallI would really reccomend this product - it's good value for money and does what Lush promise. Reccomended!

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It's always good to experiement with a wide range of lush cosmetics to find your fav !!

I am a big fan of lush products. They smell fabulous and make your skin feel so good. I was bought glorious mud body mask as a gift and as I enjoy a good pamper I couldn't wait to try it out. As always the product smelt wonderful and although a little gritty in texture it was quiet nice to use. When applying the body mask in the shower it was a little messy (you will need to rinse the shower after use). Breaking off a piece to use can be a little difficult especially if you have wet hands as the product does dissolve on contact with water. When applying the product to your body as previously mentioned it does have a gritty texture but it worked really well as an exfoliate. The smell was wonderful but I didn't feel it had a lasting effect on the body. However, it did make my skin feel smooth and soft.

Although not one of the best lush products I have used it was worth trying. As someone who has quiet dry, sensitive skin I find the majority of lush cosmetics always leave my skin feeling soft and moisturised.

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Body mask from Lush

I received a Glorious Mud body mask, one of Lush's new products, as part of the All-Inclusive Package that was available recently. It is also available as a standalone product for £3.95. The product is a new twist on Lush's body scrubs and smells like the Creme Anglaise body lotion - a much cheaper way to sample this scent considering the lotion is £25 a tub!

Glorious Mud contains rhassoul mud, a cleansing clay from the Atlas Mountains in North Africa, which is supposed to be very good for the skin. This was one of the things which drew me to the product, as I had a holiday in Morocco earlier this year and heard quite a bit about rhassoul mud, which is often used in treatments there - and all the Moroccan ladies have lovely skin!

Also in Glorious Mud is soothing aloe vera extract, as well as vanilla absolute and sesame oil to moisturise. The mask also contains sweet orange oil and myrrh resinoid. It is suitable for vegans.

The mask comes in the form of a block which is rather like a brick. It is hard and crumbly to the touch but smells absolutely delicious, like vanilla but with something extra! It definitely does smell like the Creme Anglaise body lotion, which I've smelled before but rejected on the basis that it is too expensive.

To use, I took it in the shower with me one morning. I wasn't sure what to do with it to keep it out of the way of the water, so I ended up keeping it in one of the black pots I had. I washed myself first, then, as the instructions suggest on the website, wet the end slightly, at which point it started fizzing like a ballistic, though not as dramatically.

I rubbed it all over my skin to create a paste. At first I found it was quite scrubby and a bit painful, but after dipping it into water more often it became more of a paste which was easier to spread. After covering my body with the mask (and looking like something which had just escaped from a swamp), I sat down to wait for twenty minutes.

This was, I found, the biggest problem with the mask. I had to sit there for twenty minutes and it was really pretty boring. Relaxing in a warm bath is one thing, but sitting in a cold, empty bath, covered in mud, with nothing to read (I don't want to get my books covered in mud!) and nothing to watch (water and electricity don't mix) isn't exactly my idea of fun. Not to mention the fact that my previously white bath was now covered in brown gunk.

After the appropriate time had elapsed, I washed off the mask, which took some time, got out of the bath, washed it down and proceeded to get ready. My skin did feel softer and smoother afterwards, but the best thing was the smell, which was absolutely wonderful, and lasted all day! I couldn't stop sniffing my skin, which made me look really odd! I did think the mask worked really well in that respect.

I've been able to use the mask on average about three times, so it's not a single use product, but it doesn't last as long as the other body scrubs.

Overall, this product has its good points - notably the smell, and the effect it has on skin - but overall it's a bit too messy and troublesome for my tastes. I don't think I can be bothered to sit in an empty bath for twenty minutes to use a body scrub! I'd rather stick to another body scrub that's quick to use, and if I want moisturised skin, I'd rather sit in a nice bubble bath or use a moisturiser. Overall, I'm afraid I won't be buying this again.

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A very interesting lovely smelling mud mask and scrub from Lush

Lush 'Glorious Mud' Body Mask

I was meeting ex colleagues of mine for a coffee in Derby and as I had parked my car in The Westfield Centre I felt obliged to pay my Lush shop a quick visit to have smell and a try of some products. As always you get greeted as a long lost friend and shown all the new products and helped to try quite a few. I came away with a ma bar, a sample of Crème Anglaise and s a lump of Lush Glorious Mud Body Mask. Oh well tempted again but I just can't help it everything is just so wonderful smelling and interesting to try and to use.

What have you bought this time?

This Glorious Mud Body Mask was not a pretty item but the smell was just too lovely to leave behind in the shop. The 125 gram block is not cheap at £3.95 pence but for a Lush product with its lovely ingredients and treat value it is worth it occasionally. The product cleanses the skin and also exfoliates and moisturizes too. So a bargain really as you can see it is really many products combined into this one rather ugly looking blob!

The product doesn't look at all inviting really a bit like a square ish brown lump mud, like something a child might present to you when making mud pies in the garden! The ingredient that makes up the mud element is indeed mud Rhassoul mud from the Atlas Mountains in Morocco which is a cleansing clay often used in face packs.

The smell of the product when in its unused form is that of sweet vanilla but not that strong and in the shop it is hard to smell at all because of all the other powerful smells around. If you saw it anywhere else you probably wouldn't buy it as the smell isn't that strong and it looks pretty ugly if I'm honest.

Okay let's play mud pies then:

The product is easy to use but you have to be a bit careful as it contains a fizz element that means once water is added it can sort of fizz away rather rapidly so don't leave it on the side of the bath when showering or you will just have a very mucky looking bath and no product left. They suggest using it in the shower as you can wash it all away easily but I am not a shower fan and love soaking in my bath so I use it in the bath.

They suggest wetting yourself then rubbing the block all over, leave it to soak a few seconds then rinse off under the shower. Well that is one method but my method is for the stingier ones amongst you. First cut or break the block into quarters then keep one quarter and put it on the side of the bath - put the rest carefully away for another day! Get into the bath and soak for a few minutes them pinch of small amounts of the product and rub it on your arms front legs etc - you can stand if you so desire or lie in the bath and only anoint the bits you can that are exposed , it is up to you. I just love the feeling of rubbing the slightly gritty muddy stuff on my arms legs and torso that I can reach. If you can get someone to do your back then that would be an extra treat.

The stuff fizzes and slightly dissolves as it gets wet so becomes more of a paste so is easy to spread around and you do look a bit like you have been in a mud bath such as in Dalyan in Turkey or by the Dead Sea only not quite so sludgey grey or quite as thick as you get with those mud baths. Luckily although you look as though you are covered in mud the smell is so much nicer.

The aroma really becomes quite pronounced as you smother yourself and as I expect from a Lush product the room also fills with the wonderful vanilla creamy exotic smell. The vanilla combines with the mud and sesame to produce an earthy sweet sort of aroma that really is almost good enough to eat but I wouldn't try! The vanilla and sesame combine to moisturize while there is also aloe vera in the product to sooth your skin too.

The gritty sandy texture of this product does an excellent job of exfoliating away any dead skin and harder dry areas such as knees and elbows feel much softer afterwards too. Rinsing off is easy but it does get everywhere in the bath on the sides etc although it isn't hard to swill off with water. The bath water is an odd colour when you have finished and after I let the water out I do have to give the bath a bit of an extra swill to remove the gritty bits left.

However my skin felt lovely and smooth and also soft after using this and the smell lingered for quite some time after I dried myself too.

You can if you like wet yourself, apply the product the leave it as a body mask to dry for a while before rinsing it off but you are a bit messy when covered in this so you would have to stand in the bath or shower so I'm not sure how practical that is unless you have a big room like a spa and can lie covered in a towel on a table while waiting! I tend to use it rather more as a scrub than a mask but you do have the option of the mask treatment if you feel tempted.

This to be aware of are:

If you have any false tan and use this or indeed any other scrub then you will have to reapply your fake tan as it removes this along with the dead skin cells.

No-one will want to share your bath after you have used this and you will have to spend a little time cleaning the bath before anyone else uses it or they will wonder what you have been doing in there!

The product will sort of dissolve away once wet so if you are a meany like me and don't want to use the whole lot in one go then break it and store it away from the bath or shower or you will just have a soggy mess next time.

If you use the product dry as a block onto your wet skin you get a much stronger scrub than if you use my method of squashing the product into a paste that you then rub on your skin. Either way gives the same wonderful smell though.

Summary:

I think this is a fantastically different product that I will certainly be buying again and I have it on my present list too for family when they ask. The smell is delicious, warm comforting and creamy. Well done Lush I'm happy as a pig in mud when wallowing in my 'Glorious Mud' bath. I smell a bit better though, I hope.

Definitely a 5 star product that I heartily recommend.

Thanks for wallowing with me. This review may be posted on other sites under my same user name

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Glorious by name, glorious by nature

I recently stayed in a spa hotel where one of the treatments offered was a full body mud mask. When reading details of the treatment, I noticed that the product they used was made from Rhassoul mud. Although it had been a while since I had been into a Lush store, I still get email newsletters from them, so I knew that they had recently launched a product called Glorious Mud, a body mask also made from Rhassoul mud. Faced with a choice of paying £45 to have this spa treatment or £3.95 for the Lush version, there was no contest and the next week I popped into Lush to pick one of these up for myself.

This product is listed on the Lush website under the heading of body scrub, but when you click on the actual product description it is described as being a 'muddy body mask' which was the purpose I wanted it for. I've used a body mask before (from Avon) but that one came in a tub. I think really this type of product is a bit of a novelty, and you don't see many of the around, but people regularly use face masks, so why not body masks too?

Glorious Mud is made predominantly from Rhassoul mud, as I've already mentioned. Rhassoul is a clay from the Atlas mountains and they say it will smooth and soften the skin, which has to be a good thing. The other ingredients in this body mask include vanilla absolute and sesame oil to moisturise, aloe vera to soothe and sweet orange oil which tones the skin.

Another ingredient is sodium bicarbonate. This is included because when it comes to using it, the product fizzes slightly, allowing it to be smoothed over the skin more easily.

Lush say that this product has the same scent as one of their body lotions - Crème Anglaise. Having looked this up, I was shocked to see that it costs £25.00 a pot. Perhaps if you were considering buying the lotion, it might be wise to try this first as it leaves a scent on the skin, and it will at least be a cheap way of deciding if you really like it!

The scent is incredibly sweet, and although the vanilla definitely dominates the scent, I can smell the sweet orange oil in it, which gives a tiny bit of zest taking the edge off the vanilla and stopping it from being sickly. It's quite a girly scent, and actually smells more like a dessert than a bath product!

When it came to use this, I was surprised to see there were no instructions. When you buy a Lush product you place it into a paper bag and at the checkout they ask if you want a label on it. I usually say no, but this time said yes, because I assumed the directions would be on the label. As it was when I came to use it and actually read the label, it just had a product description which was not very helpful. I headed to the Lush website and still could find no full explanation for how to use it. I then tried the forum, where I found a post suggesting the best way to use it was to rub it over wet skin, leave for a while and then rinse off. It also suggested cutting it into three, but I decided I'd just use it whole and see what happened. I wasn't too bothered about getting lots of uses out of it as I'd bought it expecting it to be a one use product.

I decided what I would do was have a bath to get my skin wet (and because I felt like a relaxing soak!) and then get out, apply this, leave for a few minutes then hop back in to wash it off. All I can say is I'm glad it was warm and I'm glad no-one rang the doorbell when it was on!

The mask is in a block and looks just like a big lump of soil. The block was drier than I thought and when I attempted to rub it onto my wet skin it began to crumble and little bits were falling off. I found that immersing it in water, then rubbing it on had the best effect. I had worried that it would just dissolve away to nothing the moment I got it wet, but although it fizzed a tiny bit it didn't disintegrate all that much so I was still able to apply it effectively.

I found that the product felt quite gritty against my skin and I can understand why Lush class it as a scrub, because it does feel mildly exfoliating. Saying that, it's not at all harsh or uncomfortable when rubbing it on, and didn't leave my sensitive skin with any redness.

Perhaps I was being a little naive but I thought that when I wet this it would turn into a thick mud that would rub on and sit on my skin in one thick layer. In fact it went on very thinly, and slightly patchy which made it look just liked I'd been rolling in a muddy field! I did use the whole bar, but I can see that if you were careful you could get more than one use out of it - I'd say two, perhaps three at a push.

The scent of the product seemed to intensify when it was applied and although I quite liked the scent, it is incredibly sweet and I can imagine some people would find it sickly. During the couple of minutes I left it on it didn't make my skin feel tight or uncomfortable which was another thing I had been worried about.

When I rinsed this off, I found it all washed off fairly easily, and didn't create a huge amount of mess. There were a couple of muddy splashes on the edge of the bath but these rinsed off easily with a couple of sprays of Flash.

I must admit when I saw this I thought of it more as a novelty bath product than anything else, and didn't imagine it would have any really big effects on my skin. I couldn't have been more wrong. I saw an immediate difference, and as mad as this sounds, even when I was drying off, the towel felt different against my skin! It's hard to describe without sounding crazy, but I swear it's true!

There was a noticeable difference to the feel of my skin, it felt incredibly smooth and baby soft. The biggest change for me was actually on my elbows! My elbows are always really dry and as they're both scarred they never really feel smooth to the touch, but there was a massive change and then skin there felt smoother and more moisturised. I spent the whole day running my hands over my elbows, goodness knows what people must have thought!

Another great thing was that the scent of the product stays on the skin for several hours after using it. It's a scent I noticed on my skin all the time so I actually decided not to wear perfume, as the smell stayed so strong I didn't feel I had to.

This product is actually a miracle worker described as a lump of mud. It's amazing and at just £3.95 it's a bargain too. I'm really glad I went to Lush and didn't fork out to have it done in the spa - and of course I also saved myself the embarrassment of standing in front of a beauty therapist I've never met wearing nothing but a pair of paper knickers!

I would thoroughly recommend Glorious Mud - it might seem like a bit of a gimmick, but that just adds to the fun, it gave me super soft, moisturised skin and would be the perfect product to use before a big night out. Buy yours from Lush or www.lush.co.uk - what are you waiting for?!

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A great little treat

Glorious Mud Body Mask Fro Lush......

My last trip to the Lush store resulted in a little more money spent than I had anticipated although this is always the way. I managed to grab myself quite a few bargains and a few items that I hadn't previously tried too.

This Glorious Mud Body Mask was one of the items which I thought I would try out and I really wasn't disappointed. The 125 gram block of product set me back £3.95 pence which is really a standard price for a Lush product and I found this affordable for a little treat for myself.

The product itself not only cleanses the skin but also offers both exfoliation and moisturising at the same time. It really does seem to be a little bit of everything all rolled into one! This is what spurred me on to buying the product in the first place.

The product doesn't look overly special as it is a big brown lump of what appears to be mud, but this is pretty much expected given the name of the product. The smell of the product wasn't overly strong until it was put to use but even before I used it, it did have somewhat of a sweet vanilla aroma going on which was very appealing and to look at, you wouldn't have thought it would smell so nice. But it does!

The product is both easy and fun to use and needs to be applied in the shower really. I first made sure everywhere was already clean and fresh then stepped away from the shower and rubbed the block of brow between my hands and then rubbed the product over my skin. The block fizzed easily within my wet palms and became to melt down in to some sort of paste that really did loo like mud. The aroma by this time was more apparent and smelt very much like a Lush product.

The sand type texture of the product did a really good job of getting off any hard skin that I had especially on areas such as knees and elbows. I took my time in rubbing the Glorious Mud into my skin and by the time I had worked my way up from my legs on to my top body the leg area was starting to dry off somewhat. The product can be used either as a body scrub or indeed left on ato dry and be used more as a mask type product.

I used it more or less half and half as the top part of my body didn't really get time too dry off compare to my leg area. Rinsing off the Glorious Mud was easy and I made sure everywhere got another good rub to completely rid myself of the brown mud.

My skin felt really "Glorious" after using this product. It was smooth and silky and perfect for applying my fake tan, as I hoped it would be. Apparently it removes traces of fake tan too but when I used it I was tan free.

All in all I have to say this is a great product that I will certainly be buying again. It had a lovely aroma and felt like a treat to apply. It left my skin feeling silky smooth and looking beautiful too.

I think it is most certainly a 5 star product and I would recommend it to all! Perfect for getting your skin in tip top condition for the summer!

I do hope that this has been of some help/interest to you.

Many thanks for a taking the time to read.

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A good product but it's too much hassle for my liking.

Glorious Mud is one of Lush's newly released body products and is available to purchase at their retail outlets or online at www.lush.co.uk at the price of £3.95 for a 125g block. I was given a quick demo in the store before I decided to buy it, and the staff were helpful in explaining what it was all about as I am always very interested in anything new coming in!

This is a different type of product than I would normally buy, and is more of a treat than a functional bathing product. The idea is that you apply it to your skin as a conditioning mud pack treatment and it soothes and moisturises your skin.

Lush say: "Rub our dynamic, fizzy cube of rhassoul mud all over your body to cover and cleanse. The aloe vera extract is soothing, and the mix of sesame and vanilla will moisturise. Mask your whole body for smooth, soft skin that smells just like the delectable Crème Anglaise body lotion. We combined the basics of a mud mask with a little bit of Mo's ballistic wisdom to get that fizzing effect that allows it to be smoothed over the body."

The item itself is a smallish cube-shaped solid block with a creamy brown colour and a sandy, dry looking texture. The main ingredient is Rhassoul mud, which is a cleansing clay from the Atlas Mountains and is often used in mud masks. It also contains Aloe Vera which has restorative and hydrating properties. It smells pleasant enough, and is sweet but subtle. My first impressions are that this will be simple but good for sensitive skins.

I prefer to use this in the bath as I find a lot of Lush's solid products can't stand up to the flow and humidity of a shower and lose their integrity easily before crumbling away to nothing. To use, I dampened my skin and soaked the mud block in the bath water for about 10 seconds to soften it slightly. The outside of the block then starts to foam up and creates a texture somewhat similar to a chocolate mousse dessert (yum!). Once it has softened I can then start applying it to my skin, by simply rubbing the block directly onto my legs and arms. I needed to repeatedly soak the block in water to get it to foam up, as it can be quite scratchy if you're just rubbing it straight on and the foamy layer disappears quite quickly.

Once the muck was fully covering my skin I attempted to hang my limbs above the water level and perched my hands and feet on the side of the bath to allow the mud pack some time to get to work. It looks really awful, think mud fight at Glastonbury and that's about right. It was a streaky, brown, gritty mess and looked most unpleasant. The smell was lovely though, and the soft sweet vanilla smell went a little way to relaxing me and getting over the 'eww' factor of the mud pack.

Once the stuff has dried out and settled for a few minutes I then eagerly washed it off. This was quite a laborious process and the stuff got everywhere, including all over the bath tub. I rubbed away at it with my puffy sponge and that got rid of the worst. The horrible after-effect however, was that all the grit sank to the bottom of the bath and I could feel it there while I continued to wash, which was quite uncomfortable. It also made the bath water really dirty and murky.

The effect it has on my skin was noticeable, my dry skin seemed smoother I think it definitely softened my skin, especially on my legs which usually need special attention due to frequent shaving. Even 24 hours afterwards my skin still felt soft, but I did need to moisturise the problem areas such as my knees and ankles, which are always drier.

I think the only problem with this product is that it is a real pain to use and is messy and time-consuming. The after effects were good and my skin felt softer, but I would rather just slap on some lotion after my bath and save myself the hassle of using this mud pack. If you are lucky you'll get 3 or 4 applications out of one block, so it's not too bad for the price. It's a nice occasional treat but I probably won't get it again and there are a lot of other Lush products that I prefer over this one. Not bad, but it doesn't really fit in with my beauty routine and it's an extra step that I can (and will!) gladly miss out.

If you like this then you will love these similar products from Lush: Crème Anglaise body lotionCupcake fresh face mask Mud Flats retro soap

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A Rhassoul Mud Body mask in a cube

The election is over (for now) and I am back. After years of hard work which has seemingly paid off, so has my raving about how much I love Lush products, because as a thank you from one of my candidates came a huge box of Lush products which arrived to my door on Saturday morning and it was definitely most welcome.

Amongst the treasured gifts, most of which I have had listed as some of my favourite Lush items was quite a few new items that I had never heard of before, nor seen because for the last month my focus has been elsewhere. The first item I quite liked the look of was a foot shaped foot scrub in a bright green colour staring back at me and next to it a rather boring looking brown cube which looked like some wet sand and looking closely at it, I was surprised to find it was called 'Glorious Mud' and it smelt quite strongly of vanilla with an aim to moisturise your body and act as a body cleanser and body mask all in one little cube.

Called 'Glorious Mud' I expected it to be something more chocolate smelling, similar to Cupcake which still remains my favourite face mask, however, it wasn't too be. Instead the 'Mud' part of this product derives from the fact it contains Rhassoul Mud, which is now used in quite a few Lush products, such as Waylander Soap. After some research it seems Rhassoul mud can be used for almost any problematic skin related issue. Rhassoul Mud is known for its ability to keep skin looking beautiful and it comes from deposits under the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. The Mud itself is composed of high concentrations of trace elements such as magnesium, iron, sodium, silica, potassium and calcium and it is these elements which help to detoxify the skin, hence its ability to prevent skin problems. The drying action of a Rhassoul mud mask helps draw out impurities and toxins in the skin. Rhassoul Mud can also be used as a cleanser since it helps get rid of excess dirt, sebum, oil and skin cells while at the same time having a moisturizing and soothing effect on the skin. It helps reduce dryness and flakiness while improving texture, elasticity and clarity. It is also anti-microbial which makes it a perfect supplement for someone prone to acne.

So having found out what Rhassoul Mud is and more importantly what its function is, there is also a host of other ingredients as you would expect to find within a Lush product. So starting with Sesame Oil which is mainly used to soften, hydrate and moisturise the skin, in doing so it forms a protective barrier on the skin. Next on the list is Aloe Vera which works similarly to that of Sesame Oil in protecting, softening, hydrating and moisturising the skin and Aloe Vera is also known for its ability to soothe the skin from irritants. Myrrh Oil when used on the skin is known to work well with skin complaints such as chapped and cracked skin, eczema and athlete's foot. Sweet Orange Oil follows next and it is helps to detoxify a congested skin and is used mainly to soothe irritated skin and deal with skin complaints such as Acne in a similar way to Aloe Vera. The next ingredient is a Lush favourite and that is Sodium Bicarbonate which can be found in products such as Bath Ballistics and Bubble Bars and it is used to dissolve the product into your bath water and create the fizzing effect as it rushes around your bath. The final ingredient to mention is Vanilla Absolute which is used in this case to add a scent to the product, although I am not personally a big fan of vanilla smelling products because I find them too sweet for my own personal tastes and although this is quite a strong vanilla scent but at the same time not too over-powering that it gives you a headache.

So with mud cube in hand, you can either use it in the bath or the shower, I opted for the shower because I felt it would be an easier task to deal with and I found that you needed to allow the water from the shower to soak the cube through and then it began to melt and fizz between my hands, which is one of the strangest sensations I have ever felt, however as it becomes loose and fizzes away you rub the paste that is left from the cube all over your body and the grains from the Rhassoul Mud can be felt against your skin as you massage the paste around your skin, the grains themselves are not harsh on the skin although you can definitely feel them working on the surface. When I used this, I massaged the paste in circular motions starting with my ankles and then working my way up being pleasantly surprised at just how far the paste spread across my body, given that the cube was quite small. Then once you have lathered yourself in this paste and the vanilla smell if evident on the skin, I left it on my skin for a good 10 minutes whilst I was washing my hair to allow the essential oils to work on my skin. Then once I had finished I removed the paste from my skin with minimal effort by washing it away with a sponge.

Once I had finished in the shower and all traces of paste from the Mud Cube had been removed my skin was very very soft after I had patted my skin dry and the vanilla scent was very subtle. I was even more delighted to find that some of the rough skin on my elbows had been scrubbed away and the skin was now soft and smooth there too. So I was really suitably impressed with the overall effect that this cube had on my skin.

However, there is a downside to this product and it's the same negative that I had with the Emotibombs from Lush, as soon as they begin to fizz away they dissolve and disappear quite quickly, so you have to be on your guard and ready to save as much as the product as possible to stop it from going to waste, whereas with your average body scrub the texture is usually quite thick meaning it doesn't wash away under the shower as quickly. But, I did like this product a lot and I liked both the subtle scent of vanilla and the effects it had on my skin, not something I have always found as a result of using other body scrubs, cleansers and indeed body masks.

To purchase this product you will be expected to pay £3.95 and the cube itself weighs 125g which isn't the largest Lush product but in comparison to the Emotibombs they are double in size and the cost is similar, so in that respect you get more for your money.

I wouldn't hesitate buying this product for myself as an extra treat, it isn't something that I would use week after week because I am not sure that is what its purpose is, but it is a nice treat and I look forward to trying further products from Lush from within in this range.

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Fab fab fab !!!

When I first saw Glorious Mud appear in Lush Times I continued flicking through the pages, it wasn't anything special i my opinion. I had tried body masks in the past without much success and had found Lush's body scrubs a bit too difficult to use so I wasn't that excited to try this.

Now, how I came to buy this ....

I was on one of my usual shopping trips to Lush where I was lucky enough to win an online competition, so whilst waiting for the assistant to get my prize I started browsing the display with the new products on. I picked up Glorious Mud and had a sniff .... it smelt of a lovely creamy Vanillary dessert which I as told is the new Creme Anglais scent (which is also a body cream). I usually only prefer fruity scents but I was so surprised at how much I liked the scent, it was so vey more-ish!

Now, onto the important part of how to use it. I would recommend cleansing your skin in a shower (or bath but shower work best) then turning the shower off (or stepping out of the bath). I did first try rubbing the block onto my skin but found this a little bit too harsh, so instead I rubbed the block between my hands. It instantly began to fizz and dissolve ito a paste which I rubbed all over my body. Being a dark brown colour it's easy to see so you know exactly where you've put it. The grains in this product seem to gently exfoliate your skin and are smaller and less harsh than some of Lush's solid body scrubs which I loved. When applying I actually rubbed it in small circular motions. I felt this made the whole experience into more of a special Spa treatment and felt it really helped improve the look, texture and feeling of my skin. Leave it on for 10-15 minutes or longer if you want, I read a magazine but my friend cleaned her shower out whilst waiting, whatever you choose! You will feel it start to dry. Wash off thoroughly.

I didn't expect to feel much difference but I was amazed. My skin smelt so divine and tasty. When I brushed my legs together they felt soooo smooth and silky it was pure bliss. On the whole my skin looked amazing and had a glow to it like I have only experienced after a really good spa scrub and massage! I was super impressed.

I used half the cube. One cube costs £3.95 and weighs 125g and is suitable for vegans and vegetarians alike.

Now, what I think made it so great. It contains Aloe Vera which means it is great for sensitive skin as it is very gentle and soothing. It contains moisturising Sesame Oil and Vanilla extracts, which gives a nice smell too. Rhassoul Mud is used in the poshest of Spa's and is great for deep cleansing your skin.